Are videogames really causing violence into todays society and if so, is it really the videogames fault?

Question

In a sense of course, the answer would to be simply as stated: No. The reason for this being that I am an actual gamer and being the realist that I am, I have realized that all the violence in videogames could not have been possible without the violence within society. While Jack Thompson does have a few points in saying that videogames CAN be dangerous, he is completely without reason in saying that videogames need to be banned and all of them cause violence within todays society. So while society is to blame, who is to take a fair share of the blame as well? The answer being this; parents. If a child becomes violent because of a videogame it is not because of the game, but because of the lack of parenting the child has had and the teaching of the difference between reality and fantasy. I grew up playing videogames and I have played all, from the rating to E to M and beyond, I have become far more intellectual because of games, but that is just me, not you. Do any of you agree with me

Answer 1

'Man does not have the right to develop his own mind. This kind of liberal orientation has great appeal. We must electrically control the brain. Some day armies and generals will be controlled by electric stimulation of the brain.’ - U.S. government mind manipulator, Dr. Jose Delgado

You are flogging a horse that is dead, kiddo. Violent video games are mind control programming at one of its most insidious degrees.

Scientists have discovered a brain mechanism that may link violent computer games with aggression has been discovered by researchers in the US. The work goes some way towards demonstrating a causal link between the two - rather than a simple association.

Many studies have concluded that people who play violent video games are more aggressive, more likely to commit violent crimes, and less likely to help others. But critics argue these correlations merely prove that violent people gravitate towards violent games, not that games can change behaviour. This is patently untrue but it is the official party line of those with a vested interest in such behaviour. How better to shape the mindset of a potential warrior for the military with such conditioning?

Psychologist Bruce Bartholow from the University of Missouri-Columbia and colleagues have found that people who play violent video games show diminished brain responses to images of real-life violence, such as gun attacks, andto other emotionally disturbing pictures, such as those of dead animals, or sick children. And the reduction in response is correlated with aggressive behaviour.

Seung-Hui Cho was a mind-controlled assassin, even aside from clear evidence of influence from outside parties, the fact is that the cultural brainwashing of violent video games and psychotropic drugs directly contributed, as it does in all these cases, to the carnage at Virginia Tech last month. Clear misuse of the video game genre? Yes, but you cannot deny the connection.

"Several Korean youths who knew Cho Seung Hui from his high school days said he was a fan of the most violent video games, particularly a game called "Counterstrike," a hugely popular online game in which players join terrorism or counter terrorism groups and try to shoot each other using all types of guns," reports Newsmax citing the Washington Post.

To be honest it is not much different from the way tv shows such as CSI, Lost and 24. Remember when only villains on TV tortured? Today, American heroes on TV dramas like "24" and "Lost" routinely use torture to save the day.

These shows are intended as entertainment. But their impact is anything but fictional: Junior soldiers have imitated the interrogation techniques they have seen on television - on the notion that they work. In addition, these shows - and the increase in torture scenes - reinforce the idea that torture is necessary in certain situations. This goes against the guidance of those who have actually performed interrogations.

People are getting these violent messages from all angles. Kids with video games, cartoons, a military mindset, and a decrease in proper education due to the downfunding of a system which is coupled with a strict eye on who shapes young minds and with what ever diminishing scope. Pretty harsh huh?

The studies that come out regularly saying that tv and violent games do now harm are wrong and guess who pays for them? The makers themselves as well as many branches of the federal government.

The dumbing down of humanity is represented by another shift which occurs in the brain when we watch television or become numbed into such activities as gaming. Activity in the higher brain regions (such as the neo-cortex) is diminished, while activity in the lower brain regions (such as the limbic system) increases. The latter, commonly referred to as the reptile brain, is associated with more primitive mental functions, such as the "fight or flight" response.

The reptile brain is unable to distinguish between reality and the simulated reality of television. To the reptile brain, if it looks real, it is real. Thus, though we know on a conscious level it is "only a film," on a conscious level we do not--the heart beats faster, for instance, while we watch a suspenseful scene. Similarly, we know the commercial is trying to manipulate us, but on an unconscious level the commercial nonetheless succeeds in, say, making us feel inadequate until we buy whatever thing is being advertised--and the effect is all the more powerful because it is unconscious, operating on the deepest level of human response.

The reptile brain makes it possible for us to survive as biological beings, but it also leaves us vulnerable to the manipulations of television programmers. This is where the manipulators use our own emotions as strings to control us. The distortions and directions we are being moved to are taking place in the subconscious, often undetected.

Unadulterated Violence is accepted on regular TV. Killing in the name of the mother government is praised, that is unless the violence is committed in self defense to protect someone from the system. Sharp shooters, bombers, and assassin are worshipped if they are fighting for the system, are in the military, or are associated with groups that control the masses locally, such as the local police department.

I don't condone violence, however it's hypocritical to support one form of homicide when it favors the elite, and condemn another when it's done to protect your land, freedom, or loved ones.

This odd reality transfers itself into the shady world of video games that are stepped in plots and tasks to kill as much as the player can. The players are getting younger and younger with 7 out of 10 children playing games with a 'Mature' rating.

Recently I was checking out the PC video game selection at a very large electronics store. I was appalled to see nearly 50 different games in which the setting of the game is IRAQ and the goal is to kill as many insurgents as possible and fulfill the mission. Children today are being indoctrinated through their favorite games and law enforcement programs to be the button pushes of the weapons of mass destruction for tomorrow's world.

And that, kiddo, is what I have to say about that. Sorry but you asked. I would not say zero tolerance but darn near close to it.

Answer 2

you are right in a way but is this not just the other side of the perennial argument about guns? A gun is just an object and therefore is only dangerous if used to cause harm. BUT a gun is an object made to Kill things therefore it cannot be intrinsically inert. Problem is with Video Games as with drugs including alcohol, all are designed to alter the state of your mind. The better and more realistic the game gets the more some people will find it hard to distinguish between reality and Fantasy. Quite a lot of people do have this problem already. It's too simple to say this is just a parenting problem, society as a whole needs to look more closely at collective responsibility and not just shrug. The other influence is the fear generated via the media that leads to young people being over-protected from life to the extent that some actually believe the false world of computers is real so it comes as a great shock when they have to fend for themselves in any way. Before you dismiss this look at the stats for young suicides over the 'civilised' world, they go up every year and those from Scotland, particularly rural communities are leading the way. Broadband is here but psychological help is needed and it is not.

Answer 3

videogames and TV glamorize violence, however, it is the parents responsibilities to limit what their children play and how long their children are exposed to this violence. Younger children are better off with less esposure whereas older children are capable of handleing more. The thing is, up to a certain age children don't know the difference between reality and fantasy, this has nothing to do parental teachings but everything to do with human developement. (have you ever tried to convince a child that monsters aren't real?) I don't have anything against video games, I do follow the rating guidlines and I do limit the time spent playing them

Answer 4

Parents like to blame someone else to blame for their kids turning out violent because if they didnt they would have to take responsibilty for some one other than themselves. I am fortunate enough to have parents that actually care about how I end up, I have played the entire Need for Speed series form #1(The Original Need for Speed) to #9(Most Wanted) and am a devoted fan of The Dukes of Hazzard (My dream car is none other than the General Lee), but I dont street race, I may do some insane stuff such as driving my truck thorugh feilds, gravel pits, and flying down gravel, or frozen roads, but that I learned form my dad by hearing about hte insane stuff he and his buddies did back in the 70's with cars like his challenger, his buddys' coronet, and his brother's 460 powered F-100( That truck was insane)

Answer 5

That would be a personal judgment. It's not the direct cause of violence..it depends on a lot of things. And no, it can not be directly stated. You make decisions yourself, and can't blame a video game for your acts of violence. Whether you think the game helped you act with violence, well..that is something you will have to be able to judge yourself.

Answer 6

as it has been said, "guns don't kill people, people kill people."

nuff said